Constructing a Narrative; The Buds of Environmentalism and the LGBTQI+ Movement

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    One object that struck me while looking at archived materials was an anthology (in the original sense of the word) from the 1870s. This book contained more than a hundred locally-sourced pressed flowers within its pages and it held up surprisingly well. (pics related)




A lot of what Yazdiha’s book The Struggle for the People’s King discusses in chapters 2 and 3 has to do with how Martin Luther King Jr’s memory has been utilized to ground and legitimize competing narratives concerning the legacy of the Civil Rights Movement. Nitpicking elements and words from his entire life, many arguments have been made for how King would have wanted to be remembered. His words and actions have been used to legitimize ideas of conservative white christian victimhood, to non-violent moderation and civility, radical dismantling of systemically racist systems, among others. Movements ranging from Taking Back Miami to the LGBTQ Rights movement have all strategically used the Civil Rights Movement as a starting point of their political narrative.




While this little book of flowers is not currently attached to any competing narratives, our group is very much intending on resurfacing it as a key point in the beginnings of our constructed narrative of environmentalist movements at Kenyon. Similarly to using the Civil Rights Movement as a spiritual starting point from which the LGBTQI+ movement sprung, by showcasing how people were interred in the environment all that long ago, our group is considering using this book as a spiritual predecessor of what would later develop into a movement towards environmental consciousness and preservation. 

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